The Legacy Begins: Shadows of the Moon
by Firewhiskey Moon
Summary: The life of a warrior. The life no she-cat in DarkClan knows. Moonpaw is a TreeClan apprentice training to be a warrior. But as war looms on the horizon, Moonpaw makes discoveries about her past as she makes the journey from apprentice to warrior. With cats dying one by one, killed by an unseen foe, Moonpaw's life slowly spins out of control. Book 1 of 8. Rated T
1. Prologue

**_Disclaimer: I do not own Warriors._**

**_Special thanks to Sapphire93, the most awesome beta ever._**

_Prologue_

Graystorm paced anxiously outside the nursery as his mates cries broke the silence of the night. The Clan's medicine cat was snapping orders at one of the other queens as Silentsong, Graystorm's mate, gave birth to their first kit. It seemed like an eternity had passed before Frogpelt's dark brown tabby head poked out of the den to pin him with dark green eyes.

"Four kits," Frogpelt announced. "Three toms and a she-cat."

Graystorm purred and pushed his way into the den. Padding over to Silentsong, he nuzzled her for a moment before his gaze landed on his kits. There was a pure white tom nestled against his mother's stomach, and next to him were two pale ginger toms. The last kit, the smallest, was a silver furred she-cat with a single white paw.

"What shall we name them?" he asked, directing his attention to his mate.

"Silverkit for the she-cat," Silentsong meowed immediately.

"Icekit for the white tom," Graystorm decided. "The two ginger toms will be Lightkit and Flamekit. The three of them will make fine warriors."

Silentsong's ears flattened against her head. "Yes."

"And Silverkit will make a good queen," he finished, not even glancing at the she-kit. "Rest now, Silentsong."

Silentsong watched him leave and hissed crossly, tail wrapping across Silverkit protectively. She had no doubt her three other kits would make fine warriors, but she knew Silverkit was special. Mothers could tell those things. Silverkit was not going to be an ordinary old queen, like all of the other she-cats were in this cursed Clan. No, Silverkit would be different, she would change everything.

She waited patiently until she heard the even sounds of sleeping cats throughout the camp. There was only one guard on that night, Hawkwing, but he would be easy to slip by without him noticing. Picking up Silverkit by the scruff the she-cat quietly slipped from the nursery, leaving her other three kits sleeping peacefully in the nest. As she vanished behind the medicine cat den, Silentsong didn't even look back as she crawled through a hole behind the den out into the forest of DarkClan territory. She made her way swiftly through the forest, knowing she would have to hurry or be found missing.

"Silentsong," a voice hissed from the tree line across a tiny stream.

Silentsong waded through the stream and stopped on the bank, placing Silverkit at her paws as a dark gray she-cat slid out from the tree line and padded over to pick up the kit. The two she-cats nodded to each other before Silentsong turned to wade back across the stream and the dark gray she-cat turned to leap back into the forest, making her way back to the camp of her own Clan, TreeClan. A queen was kitting there tonight, Berryheart, a good friend of Silentsong's who had agreed to take in any she-cats the DarkClan queen gave birth to so that the kits could grow up into the life they would never have in DarkClan.

The life of a warrior.

_**A/N: And so the first in the Legacy series begins. :) I'm hoping to update this story at LEAST once a week, but it will depend on both how long it takes me to finish chapters and how long it takes my awesome beta to sort through all my mistakes, haha.**_


	2. The Worst Mentor

**_Disclaimer: I do NOT own warriors._**

**_Thanks to Sapphire93 the best beta ever._**

_Review Replies:_

_Spottedmoth123: I'm glad you like the story! Normally I don't write about original Clans, but this idea just would not get out of my head, even when I tried to force it away, haha. So I started writing and fell in love with my Clans. Thanks for the review._

_Chapter One: The Worst Mentor_

"Brackenpaw!" Moonkit squealed as the older tom walked by. "Duskkit and I are getting our apprentice ceremony today!"

Brackenpaw smiled and lightly cuffed the tiny she-cat over the ears. "That's great, Moonkit. Right, Firepaw? Redpaw?"

The two red furred cats nodded, looking at the kit with eyes that shone with amusement. Next to them a large black and white tom snorted crossly, glaring at Moonkit with dislike. Moonkit shrunk slightly under Badgerpaw's glare until Redpaw noticed and turned to hiss crossly at the grumpy tom. Badgerpaw growled, spitting something at Redpaw that had the she-cat's fur bristling before he padded away.

"What's his problem?" Moonkit asked curiously.

"He's just grumpy because he's not a warrior yet," Firepaw snorted, his blue eyes blazing.

"Moonkit!" her mother, Berryheart, yowled. "Get over here so I can clean your fur!"

Moonkit's tail dropped but she meowed a cheerful 'bye' to the apprentices before bouncing over to her mother, allowing herself to be subjected to Berryheart's furious licks as she cleaned the reluctant kit. Next to their mother sat her brother, Duskkit, with his dusky brown fur shining. Moonkit could still smell the scent of herbs on her brother's pelt from his morning spent pestering Rowanstripe, TreeClan's medicine cat.

"Let all cats old enough to catch their own prey gather beneath the TallBranch for a Clan meeting!" Duststar yowled from her perch above the Clan.

The dens seemed to come alive as cats that had slept inside padded out of the dens and others who had lounged in the clearing sat up and moved to join the group. The sunhigh border patrol was just returning and quietly padded over to join their clanmates as Berryheart led the kits to the front of the group, her tail tip twitching anxiously. Duskkit walked slowly forward, trying to look as calm as he could while Moonkit bounced in circles around him, making his whiskers quiver in amusement.

"It is time for one of my favorite duties as Clan leader," Duststar meowed, her green eyes shining. "The naming of apprentices shows that TreeClan continues to grow and remain strong. Moonkit."

Moonkit rocked forward on her paws eagerly as the leader smiled down at her.

"You have reached the age of six moons, and it is time for you to be apprenticed," Duststar continued. "From this day on, until you receive your warrior name, you will be known as Moonpaw. Your mentor will be Drizzlepelt."

Moonpaw's joy plummeted as she stared at the leader in surprise. Drizzlepelt was the grumpiest, meanest mentor in the whole Clan! He had mentored Grayears, the deputy's mate when she was an apprentice, and she had always told horror stories about the rude old tom.

"Drizzlepelt, you are ready for another apprentice," Duststar meowed, eyes landing on the brown tom whose pelt was flecked with spots of gray. "You trained Grayears to be an excellent warrior, and have shown yourself to be a warrior of loyalty and forethought. I expect you to pass on all you know to Moonpaw."

Drizzlepelt padded forward and touched noses with Moonpaw before turning around, flicking his tail across her ears as a signal for her to follow. She padded sullenly after her mentor and sat next to him to watch her brother's ceremony.

Rowanstripe padded forward slowly and nodded to Duststar. His light brown fur seemed even lighter in the sunlight, making his ginger stripes very noticeable. His amber eyes landed on Duskkit, filling with pride.

"Cats of TreeClan, as you know, I will not be around forever," he meowed, voice calm and firm. "So it's time I took an apprentice. I have chosen a cat that has shown spirit and warmth. Your next medicine cat will be Duskpaw."

Duststar looked at Duskpaw. "Duskpaw, do you accept the post of apprentice to Rowanstripe?"

"I do," Duskpaw meowed without any hesitation.

Rowanstripe nodded. "Then at the half-moon, you must travel to the MoonTree to be accepted by StarClan before the other medicine cats."

"The good wishes of all TreeClan will go with you," Duststar finished.

"Moonpaw! Duskpaw! Moonpaw! Duskpaw!" the Clan cheered.

"Congratulations, Moonpaw!" Redpaw meowed as she and Firepaw padded over.

Firepaw glanced toward Drizzlepelt, who appeared to be arguing with Rowanstripe over something. "Too bad about your mentor. I heard from Grayears that he's a real pain in the tail!"

"I'm going to be a real pain in _your _tail if you don't learn how to respect your elders," Drizzlepelt growled, appearing behind the apprentice. "Speaking of which, they need their nests cleaned. And I heard Lilyspots saying she had a tick or two - Lizardstripe, too. Go take care of that, Firepaw."

"You're not my mentor!" Firepaw protested. "I don't -" he faltered when Drizzlepelt's eyes narrowed. "Yes, Drizzlepelt."

Drizzlepelt snorted as he watched Firepaw dart away before turning his blue eyes on Moonpaw. "We're going on a tour of the territory with Rowanstripe and Duskpaw. Come on."

"Bye, Redpaw," Moonpaw meowed before quickly following her mentor.

Moonpaw walked next to her brother as they made their way through the forest and headed west from the camp. Drizzlepelt led them in silence while every few minutes Rowanstripe would point out an herb and explain it to Duskpaw.

"Look here, Duskpaw," Rowanstripe meowed, coming to a sudden stop. He motioned to a patch of leafy delicious smelling plants. "This is catmint. This is the herb we use against Greencough during Leaf-Bare. This is the only place in our territory where it grows."

"Moonpaw," Drizzlepelt growled.

Moonpaw looked away from Rowanstripe and Duskpaw, looking at her mentor. "Yes, Drizzlepelt?"

"Pay attention, these landmarks will be useful in helping you realize where the border with LakeClan is set," he meowed, watching her with cold eyes. "That's badger rock."

She gazed at the lumpy rock he'd pointed at with his tail. She supposed it could have looked like a badger depending on which way you were looking at it.

"The border is exactly six fox lengths from here," he continued as he led her there. "Smell."

Moonpaw did so, recoiling almost immediately. "They stink like fish!"

Rowanstripe snorted.

"They do," Drizzlepelt growled. "We usually don't have any problems with LakeClan. Their cats are good about minding borders."

Moonpaw nodded and hurried after him as he turned and took off to the north. They all ran to the next border, but by the time they got there, both Moonpaw and Duskpaw were exhausted. Their muscles were screaming as Drizzlepelt continued with his explanation.

"This is the MountainClan border," he meowed. "The cats of MountainClan are extremely agile cats with long legs built for scaling the steep mountainside. They haven't been a problem in a while, but you always needs to keep your guard up over on this border."

The next and final border was the border with Darkclan. There was a small clearing with a stream flowing through it. Drizzlepelt explained that the river acted as the border.

"DarkClan," he meowed scornfully. "A bunch of stuck-up flea-bags, all of them; ever since the Clans have formed, DarkClan have only allowed toms to handle the duties of warriors and medicine cats. She-cats receive what DarkClan calls their 'queen name' at twelve moons old. Upon receiving their queen name, the she-cat has one moon to pick a mate. She spends the rest of her life as a queen, birthing litters for the Clan."

"As it should be."

Drizzlepelt's fur bristled as a group of six cats slid into the clearing on the DarkClan side of the border. The leader of the group was a large red furred tom with amber eyes. Behind him was a white and gray tom, a silver tom with dark gray spots, a fluffy gray tom, a brown tabby tom, and a tiny pale ginger tom with amber eyes.

"Redsky," Rowanstripe meowed coolly, nodding to the red tom.

"Rowanstripe," Redsky meowed back, his eyes going to Duskpaw. "A new apprentice, I see."

"Yes, that's Duskpaw," Drizzlepelt answered coldly. "He's going to be our next medicine cat. I'm mentoring his sister, Moonpaw. Moonpaw, Duskpaw, those are DarkClan warriors. Redsky, Blizzardpelt, Gravelsplash, Graystorm, and Bramblefur. I don't know the little one."

The silver tom with dark gray spots - Gravelsplash - answered. "My aprentice, Lightpaw."

Lightpaw was openly glaring at Moonpaw. "She-cats belong in the nursery," he sneered. "Not the battlefield."

Moonpaw's claws dug into the ground, her blue eyes flashing angrily. "I could beat you any day, runt."

Redsky snorted. "Little kitty's got a temper."

Moonpaw spat crossly, but stepped back when Drizzlepelt shot her a warning look. He spoke briefly with Redsky before flicking his tail and leading the apprentices and Rowanstripe back into the forest of TreeClan territory.

"You need to learn how to control your temper," Drizzlepelt snarled at Moonpaw once they were a good distance from the border.

Moonpaw's ears flattened against her head. "Yes, Drizzlepelt."

"Oh, go easy on her, Drizzlepelt," Rowanstripe chuckled. "I seem to remember an overly energetic young apprentice who would pick fights everywhere he went."

Drizzlepelt snorted. "I wasn't that bad."

Rowanstripe glanced at him. "You nearly attacked Jaggedstone at a Gathering when you were thirteen moons old."

"Who's Jaggedstone?" Duskpaw asked curiously.

"He's MountainClan's deputy," Drizzlepelt answered. "But back then he was a newly named warrior."

The group visited a few more landmarks in TreeClan territory, including the MoonTree where leaders and medicine cats spoke to StarClan. When the four cats returned to camp, Rowanstripe and Duskpaw each chose a piece of fresh-kill and headed for the medicine cat den while Moonpaw picked a plump mouse. She settled down outside the apprentices den and ate quickly. Night was only just beginning to fall when she slipped into the den and settled into the nest between Firepaw and Badgerpaw.

**XxXxXxXxX**

"Wake up!"

Moonpaw jerked, eyes opening. "Huh?"

"I said get up," Drizzlepelt growled. "Come on. We have to get to training."

Moonpaw glanced toward the entrance and groaned. _The sun hasn't even begun to come up yet!_

She heaved herself to her paws and followed him out of the den and then out of camp. They walked in silence until Drizzlepelt came to a stop near a tall oak tree.

"Start climbing," he ordered.

Moonpaw stared at him.

"Start climbing!" he growled. "You're training to be a TreeClan warrior, Moonpaw, and that requires being able to climb trees not only to catch certain prey, but also for certain battle moves."

Moonpaw sighed and crouched down before leaping and beginning to claw her way up the tree. She wasn't even a quarter of the way up when her legs muscles began their protest. She managed to heave herself up to the lowest branch and scrambled onto it, exhausted.

"Did I say stop?" Drizzlepelt snapped. "Jump down and start again."

"Jump down?" Moonpaw echoed, uneasily eyeing the drop to the ground. "But -"

"Just do it."

Moonpaw stood, hesitating for one brief moment before leaing down. She stumbled slightly on the landing but managed to stay on her paws. Drizzlepelt nodded in approval.

"Good, the jumping down will get easier the more you do it," he meowed before sitting down. "Go again. Try and get a bit higher this time."

And she did get higher, but only by two branches, before she stopped and jumped back down. Drizzlepelt watched quietly as she began climbing again, making it to the same spot as before when she turned and jumped down again. He had her climbing trees well past sunhigh. She had almost made it halfway up when he stood.

"Jump back down," he called up to her. "It's time we begin working on your hunting technique."

Moonpaw nodded and leapt down, landing ungracefully on her side. Drizzlepelt gaze a snort as she got back up on her paws before turning and leading her deeper into the forest.

"When stalking prey you must be light on your feet," Drizzlepelt explained. "Mice will be able to feel your paw steps if you're not careful."

He easily fell into a crouch, his belly fur well above the blades of grass and his tail low and straight out. He slowly and gracefully stalked forward a few steps before leaping at imaginary prey. He straightened and walked back towards her.

"You try," he meowed.

Moonpaw dropped into the crouch and he sighed, placing a paw on her flank and pushing down. He circled her, snapping out orders for her to lower her tail or adjust her paws. He shook his head, mumbling under his breath as he circled her once more, telling her to put less weight on her left side.

Finally, he nodded. "Good. Now stalk forward - and remember, light paw steps."

Moonpaw slunk forward a few steps and sprang.

"Hm, good enought," Drizzlepelt mumbled. "Now, let's try for some real prey."

He scented the air briefly before flicking his tail toward her left. She scented as well, picking up the scent of mouse. She crouched and slowly moved forward between the trees. Foraging in some fallen leaves was a plump mouse. She leapt and the startled rodent managed a loud, terrified squeal before Moonpaw delivered a killing bite.

She padded back to Drizzlepelt, holding her prey proudly. He glanced at the mouse, then at her and snorted.

"May as well head back to camp," he meowed. "That squeal will have scared off the prey."

He turned and began the walk back to camp. Moonpaw followed after him with her head low and tail dragging through the dirt. When they arrived at camp, he left to speak with Sunfire and she dropped the mouse onto the fresh-kill pile before picking out a thrush and settling next to Redpaw and Firepaw who were sharing a rabbit - a rare animal in TreeClan territory. A few minutes later they were joined by Brackenpaw and Badgerpaw, both of whom had chosen mice from the fresh-kill pile.

"So how was training, Moonpaw?" Brackenpaw asked after taking a bite of prey. "You were gone long before any of us got up."

"Drizzlepelt had me before dawn," she replied. "He had me climbing trees well past sun high and then we did some hunting."

"Catch anything?" Badgerpaw asked curiously, obviously in a much better mood than he had been the day before.

Moonpaw nodded. "A mouse."

"Drizzlepelt must have been ecstatic," Firepaw meowed, voice dripping with disdain.

"Oh yeah, he was jumping with joy," Moonpaw meowed sarcastically.

The apprentices all purred with amusement before they finished eating and began grooming. Slowly, the group retreated into the den to get a good night's sleep.

******XxXxXxXxX**

Moonpaw woke with the other apprentices the next morning. She stepped out of the den and stretched, enjoying the warm sunlight on her back. Sitting down, she gave her pelt a quick wash before looking around the damp for Drizzlepelt, confused when she didn't see him.

"Hey, Cricketsong!" she called to a young warrior who was coming out of the warriors den. "Is Drizzlepelt still sleeping?"

The reddish brown tom shook his head, grooming one of his black paws. "I think he left already, Moonpaw."

Moonpaw sighed. "Alright, thanks."

He nodded and went back to grooming.

Moonpaw shuffled her paws uneasily, unsure of what to do now. Drizzlepelt had left camp without her but should she go try to find him or should she stay and try to help out in camp?

"He's probably waiting for you."

Moonpaw jumped, startled. She hadn't even noticed Grayears sitting down next to her. the white she-cat was watching her with kind green eyes.

"He did this with me a few times," Grayears continued. "Just remember the borders and landmarks, you'll usually find him in one of those places."

"Will he get made that you're helping me?" Moonpaw asked curiously.

"Nah," Grayears meowed easily. "He may be strict but he's really not that bad. Though he does go overboard with training sometimes. Once I failed to catch any prey on my first assessment and he spent the next moon solely working on tree climbing. I thought my legs would fall off!"

Moonpaw nodded thoughtfuly. "Well, I should go find him."

Grayears nodded. "Be careful and mind the borders."

Even though she'd been out of camp twice before, Moonpaw was still confused about which landmarks and borders were in which direction. She eventually settled on walking north from camp, only stopping when the forest ended and the rocky landscape of the mountains were before her. She sighed and scented the air for Drizzlepelt's scent, but smelled nothing fresh.

_Knowing what little I do about him, he'd probably hide his scent somehow to keep me from finding him so easily, _Moonpaw thought.

"Hey!"

Moonpaw looked up to see two cats padding towards her. The larger of the two was a reddish brown tom with bright green eyes. Next to him was a brown furred tom, most likely an apprentice. The warrior glared at her.

"What are you doing at the border?" he asked accusingly.

Moonpaw's ears flattened against her head. "I'm looking for my mentor. He left camp without me because he wants me to find him using my new knowledge of the territory."

"Ah, must be Drizzlepelt," the tom snorted crossly. "Only he would use such a tacky method."

Her fur bristled

"You can see he's not here," the tom continued. "Leave."

Moonpaw lashed her tail, but turned to trot back into the forest. She was sure of two things. One: that MountainClan tom needed an attitude adjustment. And two: Drizzlepelt was the worst mentor ever.

Allegiances

TreeClan

Leader:

Duststar - dusty brown she-cat

Deputy:

Sunfire - orange tom with blue eyes _Apprentice, Badgerpaw_

Medicine Cat:

Rowanstripe - light brown tom with ginger stripes _Apprentice, Duskpaw_

Warriors:

Jadetail - gray she-cat with a black tail and jade green eyes (Sister of Raindancer and Cloverheart)

Raindancer - pale gray she-cat with blue-ish looking paws and blue eyes (Sister of Jadetail and Cloverheart)

Cloverheart - dark gray she-cat (Sister of Jadetail and Raindancer) _Apprentice, Redpaw_

Drizzlepelt - brown tom with gray flecks _Apprentice, Moonpaw_

Rockpelt - dark brown tom _Apprentice, Firepaw_

Lightsong- pale ginger and gold she-cat with white paws _Apprentice, Brackenpaw_

Whitefoot - black tom with white paws and amber eyes

Cricketsong - reddish brown tom with a black tail and four black legs

Grayears - white she-cat with pale gray ears (Mother of Sunfire's kits Firepaw and Redpaw)

Berryheart - short furred, mousy brown she-cat with blue eyes and a tan under belly (Mate of Whitefoot; mother to Duskpaw and Moonpaw)

Apprentices:

Brackenpaw - brown tabby tom

Badgerpaw - black and white tom

Firepaw - red furred tom with blue eyes

Redpaw - red furred she-cat with green eyes and gray paws

Moonpaw - silver furred she-cat with a single white paw; blue eyes

Duskpaw - dusky brown tom with tan paws and amber eyes

Queens:

Flarestorm - ginger furred she-cat (Mother of Cricketsong's kits Smallkit, Reedkit, and Stormkit.)

Elders:

Lizardstripe - dark brown tabby tom

Lilyspots - brown and white she-cat

DARKCLAN

Leader:

Poppystar - dark gray tom with pale gray forelegs

Deputy:

Skyfall - cream colored tom

Medicine Cat:

Frogpelt - dark brown tabby tom

Warriors:

Redsky - red furred tom (Mate of Whitefire)

Blizzardpelt - white and gray tom

Gravelsplash - silver tom with dark gray spots _Apprentice, Lightpaw_

Flightclaw - brown tabby tom (Mate of Scorchfur)

Firespot - ginger and brown tom (Mate of Goldensun) _Apprentice, Flamepaw_

Bramblefur - brown tabby tom (Mate of Icefur)

Hawkwing - golden tabby tom (Mate of Nightsong) _Apprentice, Icepaw_

Rockfur - dark brown tom with four white paws and a white tail tip (Mate of Gingerfur)

Graystorm - fluffy gray furred tom (Mate of Silentsong and father of Skykit, Icekit, Lightkit, and Moonkit) _Apprentice, Russetpaw_

Apprentices:

Russetpaw - russet colored tom

Icepaw - pure white tom with a bushy gray tail and green eyes

Lightpaw - pale ginger tom with amber eyes

Flamepaw - pale ginger tom with bold green eyes

Queens:

Whitefire - white she-cat with ginger paws and a ginger tail(Mate of Redsky; mother of Russetpaw and Gingerfur)

Scorchfur - tortoiseshell she-cat (Expecting Flightclaw's kits)

Icefur - white she-cat with green eyes (Mother of Bramblefur's kits; Graykit, Snowkit, and Thornkit)

Nightsong - black she-cat with yellow eyes (Mother of Hawkwing's kits; Yellowkit, Rosekit, Goldkit, and Lionkit.)

Goldensun - pale gold she-cat (Expecting Firespot's kits)

Gingerfur - red furred she-cat (Mate of Rockfur)

Silentsong - pale ginger she-cat with green eyes (Mate of Graystorm)

MountainClan

Leader:

Froststar - white she-cat with icy blue eyes

Deputy:

Jaggedstone - brown furred tom

Medicine Cat:

Stormtail - white tom with a dark gray tail

Warriors:

Redwhisker - large red furred tom with unusually long claws and blue eyes _Apprentice, Darkpaw_

Smokepelt - fluffy gray she-cat _Apprentice, Shadepaw_

Nightwing - black furred tom _Apprentice, Lilypaw_

Brackenheart - brown tabby she-cat with amber eyes

Stoneheart - dusky brown tom

Rosefur - tortoiseshell and white she-cat A_pprentice, Fernpaw_

Gingerear - ginger she-cat with a single brown ear _Apprentice, Sandpaw_

Sparrowfeather - reddish brown tom with green eye _Apprentice, Mudpaw_

Feathermist - lithe pale gray she-cat (Sister of Stormtail and Smokepelt; Mate of Sparrowfeather and mother of Lilypaw and Sandpaw)

Mistyfrost - white furred she-cat with pale gray paws and bright green eyes (Sister of Froststar; Mother of Stoneheart's kits Shadepaw and Fernpaw)

Blackpelt - black furred tom

Flowerheart - brown she-cat with one white paw

Eaglewing - golden furred tom with a white tipped tail and a white splash on his chest

Dawnsky - pale ginger she-cat with a white tipped tail (Mother of Jaggestone's kits; Petalpaw, Mudpaw, and Darkpaw)

Apprentices:

Lilypaw - tortoiseshell she-cat with blue eyes

Sandpaw - sandy colored tom

Shadepaw - dark gray she-cat

Fernpaw - light brown she-cat

Petalpaw - tortoiseshell she-cat with green eyes

Mudpaw - brown furred tom

Darkpaw - black furred tom with a silver tipped tail.

Elders:

Brambleleaf - dark brown tabby she-cat with leaf green eyes

LakeClan

Leader:

Dapplestar - dappled coated she-cat

Deputy:

Blazeheart - russet furred she-cat **Apprentice, Yarrowpaw**

Medicine Cat:

Robinsong - brown furred she-cat with blue eyes **Apprentice, Echopaw**

Warriors:

Nettleleaf - golden brown tom with white paws and green eyes **Apprentice, Dewpaw**

Pinestorm - red tom with black paws and a black tail **Apprentice, Brownpaw**

Leafwhisper - pale ginger she-cat with white paws **Apprentice, Foxpaw**

Iceshadow - dark gray she-cat with white spots

Lightstep - tiny gold she-cat (Mate of Pinestorm and mother of Yarrowpaw and Dewpaw)

Apprentices:

Echopaw - black furred she-cat with green eyes

Brownpaw - brown furred tom with blue eyes

Foxpaw - red furred she-cat with a bushy white tipped tail, white paws, a white splash chest and black tipped ears and green eyes

Queens:

Icestorm - white she-cat with icy blue eyes (Mate of Cloudspirit and mother of Shimmerkit, Windkit, Littlekit, Badgerkit, and Fawnkit)

Rainpool - light gray she-cat (blind in both eyes; Mate of Nettleleaf)

Elders:

Cloudspirit - gray furred tom with white paws

Patchear - white tom with gray patches

Sandfur - cream colored she-cat

**A/N: And there's the first official chapter plus allegiances! Also, thanks to Spottedmoth123 for adding this story to his/her alerts. Hope you all enjoyed the chapter! What did you all think? Drop a review and let me know!**

**~Ashflight**


	3. Under the Light of the Full Moon

_Disclaimer: I do not own Warriors._

**_Review Replies_**

**_Greystar12: Glad you like it!_**

**_Moonbeam141: The she-cats of DarkClan get absolutely no training at all._**

**_Gentleheart: The name plays in important part in the story, so I don't plan to change it._**

_Chapter Two: Under the Light of the Full Moon_

"Wrong!" Drizzlepelt snarled. "Get up and try again!"

Moonpaw stood and shook the dirt from her pelt before hurriedly clawing her way back up the tree. Halfway up she turned and hurled herself from the tree and onto Drizzlepelt's back, digging her paws in as best as she could without using her claws. Drizzlepelt gave a violent shake, trying to throw the apprentice off, but Moonpaw managed to keep her grip.

"Better," he meowed as she jumped off. "Much better."

Three quarter moons had passed since Moonpaw's apprentice ceremony, but she still wasn't completely used to her strict mentor. On the other paw, Duskpaw was thriving in his role as the medicine cat apprentice. He had already learned so much from Rowanstripe and his vast knowledge of herbs still surprised Moonpaw every day, even though he said it was nothing special.

He glanced up at the sun. "Time to hed back to camp. Duststar will be announcing who's going to the Gathering soon."

Moonpaw's eyes sparkled. "Do you think I'll go?"

Drizzlepelt thought about it for a moment. "I see no reason why not. Redpaw, Firepaw and Badgerpaw went last full moon. So it should be you, Brackenpaw, and Duskpaw this moon. Well, Duskpaw will get to go every moon, but you should still be able to go this time."

Moonpaw's whiskers quivered with excitement and she bounded slightly ahead of her mentor the entire way back to camp. She broke away from him to search out a meal from the fresh-kill.

"Moonpaw!" Firepaw called from near the apprentices den. "Want to share this rabbit?"

Moonpaw glanced at the plump rabbit at his paws and nodded. "Sure!"

She bounded over and settled down next to him before taking a small bite from the rabbit. Next to her Redpaw was munching on a shrew, while Brackenpaw and Badgerpaw each had a thrush at their paws. The apprentices spoke quietly about what they had done during their days, and Firepaw was happily telling a story about a skirmish at the DarkClan border.

"It was crazy!" he meowed excitedly. "That big fluffy gray tom - Graystorm - has claws like you wouldn't believe! He gave me this."

Firepaw turned his head to ackowledge the long, but shallow scratch going from his shoulder to his flank.

"Stings pretty bad," he meowed, looking back at the others. "But it doesn't hurt so much now that Duskpaw put whatever it was on it. DarkClan have started to lose their minds, picking fights at the borders. That apprentice, Lightpaw, was accusing Raindancer of stealing prey."

"Raindancer?" Redpaw meowed, surprised. "I've never seen a cat less likely to steal prey than her."

"I think he only did because she's a she-cat," Firepaw meowed and Redpaw and Moonpaw both bristled, glaring at him. "What? You know how those DarkClan toms are."

Moonpaw snorted. "One day, a she-cat's going to put all those snotty toms in their place."

"Yeah, and it'll serve them right, too," Redpaw sniffed.

A yowl sounded and the young cats all turned their heads towards the TallBranch where Duststar was perched, looking down at her Clan. Moonpaw's ears pricked and she leaned forward eagerly to hear the names of the cats going to the Gathering.

"The cats attending the Gathering will be Sunfire, Rowanstripe, Raindancer,Cloverheart, Rockpelt, Drizzlepelt, Whitefoot, Cricketsong, Grayears, Berryheart, Brackenpaw, Duskpaw, Moonpaw, Badgerpaw, Firepaw and Redpaw, and the elders, of course."

Redpaw paused and looked at her brother. "That must have been some border skirmish if she's taking all the apprentices and a good majority of the warriors."

Moonpaw had to agree - the only warriors left in camp with Flarestorm and her kits would be Lightsong and Jadetail. She shuffled her paws uneasily and looked at Firepaw. "What else could have happened that would require so much warrior presence?"

He shrugged, blue eyes confused. "Nothing interesting enought happened at the border skirmish to warrant this."

They spent the next few minutes discussing this before Duststar yowled for the chosen cats to follow her. Night was falling and the moon had already risen in the sky. It was a pretty straight course to FourCliffs. They traveled straight through the forest to the MountainClan border without crossing. They turned left and continued to walk a bit further until a large dip in the ground on the MountainClan side came into view. Duststar flicked her tail and dove down into the bowl, the rest of the Clan following after her. Situated at the edge of MountainClan territory were four small cliffs. Duststar navigated the edges expertly as she climbed up into one of them. One the three ledges next to hers were the other leaders.

"That's Poppystar," Firepaw meowed as he flicked his tail to a dark gray tom with pale gray forelegs. "He's the leader of DarkClan."

"Looks friendly," Moonpaw muttered back as Poppystar glared at various cats in the clearing. His gaze landed on her and he let out a contemptuous snort that had her fur bristling.

"The white she-cat is Froststar, she leads MountainClan," he continued. "And the last cat is Dapplestar, she's the leader of LakeClan."

"He's surrounded by she-cat leaders," Moonpaw meowed earning a stiffled purr. "Poppystar must love that."

"Oh yeah, it's his dream," Firepaw joked. "Come on, all the apprentices sit together. Try to avoid the DarkClan queens. The toms get antsy if they see them talking to other she-cats from different Clans. I think they worry the she-cats will get some sudden urge to dig their claws into something."

Moonpaw nodded and followed Firepaw to a group of apprentices. He settled down next to his sister.

"Moonpaw, meet Brownpaw and Foxpaw of LakeClan," Redpaw meowed, motioning her tail toward a brown furred tom with blue eyes and a red furred she-cat with a bushy white tipped tail, white paws and a white splashed chest. Foxpaw's ears were also tipped with black and she had bright green eyes.

"I see where you get your name from," Moonpaw meowed.

Foxpaw purred. "And I see where you get yours. Your fur is the same silver as the moon."

"Those are the MoutainClan apprentices," Redpaw coninued. "In order: the tortoiseshell there with the blue eyes is Lilypaw and next to her is another tortoiseshell with green eyes, that's Petalpaw. The sandy colored tom is Sandpaw and next to him is Shadepaw, a dark gray she-cat. The light brown she-cat is Fernpaw and next to her are Petalpaw's brothers, Mudpaw the brown tom and Darkpaw, the dark tom with the silver tipped tail."

"And we're the DarkClan apprentices," a russet furred tom meowed. "I'm Russetpaw, and that white tom is Icepaw. Next to him are his brother, Flamepaw is the one with green eyes and next to him is -"

"Lightpaw," Moonpaw finished. "We've met."

Lightpaw's fur bristled as he glared at her and Icepaw snorted. Russetpaw stared at Moonpaw for a moment, as if surprised to have been cut off by her. Moonpaw could imagine that she-cats in DarkClan never had the courage to interrupt a tom when he was speaking.

"Yes, I heard about that incident," he finally meowed.

"You talk like a warrior," Moonpaw observed.

"I should be one soon," he meowed. "My sister Gingerfur just received her queen name, so my warrior ceremony should be here soon now that I've reached twelve moons old."

Badgerpaw sniffed. "Yeah, I should be a warrior soon, too."

"A softie like you?" Redpaw teased. "As if."

Poppystar yowled, signaling the beginning of the Gathering. He slid his eyes toward Dapplestar, who was the oldest of the leaders and who would therefore speak first. She stood on her cliff and gazed down at the cats.

"LakeClan has prospered this moon, even with leaf-bare closing in on us," she meowed. "We have two new warriors, Lightstep and Iceshadow. We also have three new apprentices. Brownpaw and Foxpaw are now apprentices, and Echopaw is training under Robinsong to be our next medicine cat. Also, Icestorm has given birth to Cloudspirit's kits. Two she-cats: Shimmerkit and Fawnkit and three toms, WindKit, Badgerkit and Littlekit. Rainpool has also moved into the nursery."

Murmurs exploded at the last bit of news and nearby a golden brown tom with white paws and green eyes puffed up happily. Foxpaw leaned forward as cats chanted the names of the new warriors.

"That tom is Nettleleaf, he's my mentor and Rainpool is his mate," she informed the apprentices. "She's blind, but she's one of the best warriors our Clan had. Nettleleaf's a great warrior, too. Those kits will come from great parents."

Brownpaw nodded in agreement. "Echopaw's my sister, and before she moved into the nursery, she was my mentor. Now I'm Pinestorm's apprentice."

Icepaw glanced over. "Pinestorm? I hear he's a good warrior."

"Hush!" a warrior in front of the hissed back at them and the apprentices fell silent once more.

As Dapplestar stepped back and motioned for Froststar to speak next. The white she-cat rose gracefully to her paws and padded forward to look down at the cats below her.

"MountainClan also has new warriors this moon," she meowed. "Blackpelt, Flowerheart, and Eaglewing are attending their first Gathering as full warriors of MountainClan. We also have three new apprentices. Jaggedstone and Dawnsky's kits, Petalpaw, Mudpaw and Darkpaw are now training to be warriors and Dawnsky has resumed her warrior duties. Brambleleaf has also retired from her duties and moved into the elders den. We thank her for her many moons of service."

Cats cheered the names of the new warriors as well as the name of Brambleleaf. The old she-cat was obviously popular among the Clans.

Poppystar strode forward next and the cats fell silent once again to look up at him. "Prey runs well for DarkClan this moon. We have no warriors, but three new apprentices have begun their training; the kits of Graystorm and Silentsong, Icepaw, Lightpaw, and Flamepaw. And one of our queens, Nightsong the mate of Hawkwing, has given birth to four kits: one she-cat, Rosekit, and three toms, Yellowkit, Goldkit, and Lionkit."

"Which one's your mother?" Mudpaw asked Icepaw and the white tom flicked his tail toward a pale ginger she-cat with green eyes.

Moonpaw glanced in her direction after the two toms had focused back on Poppystar who was reported the odd death of a warrior named Flightclaw and how Flightclaw's former mate Scorchfur was now the mate of Skyfall, the Clan's deputy.

_How can the she-cats live that way? _Moonpaw thought as she met Silentsong's eyes. The she-cat stared back at her, her green eyes lighting up. Moonpaw flicked an ear, confused as to the way the she-cat seemed so pleased to see her. Silentsong soon focused her attention back on her leader just as he finished speaking.

Duststar stepped forward. "TreeClan is also prospering this moon. Prey continues to run well and we have two new apprentices. Moonpaw is training as a warrior and her brother Duskpaw has become Rowanstripe's apprentice and is training to be a medicine cat. Cricketsong's mate Flarestorm has given birth to three kits, all toms. Smallkit, Reedkit, and Stormkit."

As the leader finished speaking, the leaders all turned and spoke quietly to each other, giving the cats in the Clans all a few minutes to say their goodbyes to friends.

"Well, I wonder what happened to Flightclaw," Firepaw meowed.

Russetpaw glanced toward him. "We found him on one of our borders, not the one with TreeClan or MountainClan. His throat had been ripped and he was covered in claws marks. We could sent another cat, but not one any of our warriors recognized."

Moonpaw shuddered. "How awful."

Russetpaw nodded, looking at her. "It is awful. Scorchfur, his mate, was devastated, but she has Skyfall now, so she'll be fine."

Redpaw bristled indignantly. "I'm sure she would have been fine even without a new mate."

Lightpaw snickered. "I doubt it. She-cats are so fragile."

_I'll show you fragile, you little mange-pelt. _Moonpaw thought irritably as she glared at him. He matched her glare until Russetpaw noticed and bumped his shoulder.

"Don't be rude, Lightpaw," he meowed lightly.

"Why not? She's just a stupid she-cat."

"One that could probably beat you," Russetpaw meowed scornfully. "You're just a tiny scrap. It wouldn't be that hard."

Lightpaw lashed his tail and stalked away.

"Don't mind him," Russetpaw meowed to Moonpaw. "He's rude by nature, it's nothing against you."

"Sure it isn't," Foxpaw sniffed. "I'm sure the fact she's a she-cat has nothing to do with it, right?"

"Perhaps it has a little to do with it," Russetpaw admitted. "But he's the worst about it. Not all DarkClan cats are that bad."

"Russetpaw!" a voice called.

"That's my mentor," he meowed apologetically. "See you all next Gathering. Bye, Moonpaw."

As he padded away, Petalpaw nudged Moonpaw. "He's gone all moony over you."

Moonpaw blinked in confusion. "What?"

Foxpaw snickered. "Moonpaw's still young, Petalpaw. She has no idea what you're talking about."

As the group began to break up and join their respective Clans, Moonpaw turned her baffled gaze to Firepaw who was glaring at Petalpaw.

"What did she mean?" she asked curiously.

"Nothing!" Firepaw snapped and turned to stalk away.

Moonpaw stared after him, confused. "What's his problem?"

Redpaw purred, amused. "You'll figure it out some day, Moonpaw, but when you're a bit older."

Moonpaw shrugged and muttered "Alright," before following Redpaw over to the growing group of TreeClan cats. Badgerpaw and Brackenpaw were waiting there, having left just before Russetpaw had. The two toms seemed to take note of Firepaw's foul mood and didn't bother him about it.

The walk back to camp was slow and Duststar spent most of it speaking quietly with Sunfire. When they returned to camp, Lightstep and Jadetail were anxious to hear about what happened at the Gathering and Duststar immediately leapt on to the TallBranch. There was no need for her to call the summons since most of the Clan sat below her.

"One of DarkClan's warriors was killed on one of their borders," she meowed calmly. "We have no idea if this was a onetime occurrence, but I want to take no chances. Sunfire will be increasing the border patrols along all of our borders, and I'm sure the other Clans will be doing the same. Leaf-bare is upon, so I do not want fighting at the borders. Skirmishes eat up precious herbs that we will need later in the season. The battle training for apprentices will be increased."

Redpaw and Firepaw exchanged anxious looks at this news. The speeding up of battle training was always a sign of trouble to come. Duststar continued to speak for a few minutes before dismissing the Clan and heading into her den. As the apprentices filed into their den and curled up into their nests, a chill went through each of them.

Overhead, the full moon continued to shine.

_**A/N: Hope everyone enjoyed the new chapter! Thanks to Greystar12 for adding this story to his/her favorites. And thanks to Greystar12 and Silverstone of ThunderClan for adding the story to their alerts. **_

_**Ooh, it would appear that Firepaw's a tad bit jealous...**_

_**~Ashflight**_


	4. First Snow, First Blood

_Disclaimer: I do not own Warriors._

_Thanks to Sapphire93, the best beta ever!_

**_Review Replies  
_**

**_Neo Emolga: Haha, I'm glad you like it! And oh yeah, they are so totally jealous._**

**_Silverstone of ThunderClan: Glad you liked the last chapter, Silverstone!_**

_Chapter Three: First Snow, First Blood_

"Wake up, sleepypaw!"

Moonpaw yowled, jumping up as something cold hit her in the face. Shaking her head rapidly, she noticed the pile of snow at her paws and looked up to glare at Firepaw and Brackenpaw.

"Really?" she growled, charging toward them.

Her friends purred and took off. The three apprentices chased each other around the clearing, tossing pawfuls of snow at each other. Moonpaw skidded to a stop and scooped up a paw of snow, throwing it toward Firepaw who ducked, causing the snow to hit the cat behind him in the face.

Moonpaw's ears flattened as Drizzlepelt growled.

"Well, if you have time for a snow fight, you have time to clean out the nursery and the elders den, hunt for Flarestorm and the elders, and take care of the elders ticks," he growled before storming off.

"Tough luck," Brackenpaw meowed.

"Brackenpaw!" Badgerpaw yowled from the camp entrance. "Come on! Sunfire and Whitefoot are waiting for us so we can start our final assessment."

"Well, next time we see you guys it will be at my warrior ceremony," he purred before padding after his brother.

Firepaw snorted. "And after that we'll never see him because he and Badgerpaw will be too good to hang out with us lowly apprentices."

"Get to work, Moonpaw!" Drizzlepelt snapped from across the clearing.

"Yes, Drizzlepelt!" she called back. "Bye, Firepaw."

"Get in trouble again, Moonpaw?" Flarestorm asked in amusement as the apprentice entered the nursery.

"All I did was have some fun," Moonpaw grumbled as Flarestorm gave her young kits the okay to go play out in the clearing.

"You know Drizzlepelt hates fun," Flarestorm snorted before following her kits and leaving Moonpaw to her duty.

Using her claws the scrape the moss together, Moonpaw rolled it into a ball and carried it to the dirtplace off the side of camp and dropped the dirty bedding down. She padded back out to the main camp and headed out the tunnel to gather the fresh moss she needed for the nursery. She wasn't surprised by how quiet the forest was on this snowy morning, most of the prey would be snuggled into their burrows for a while, meaning that prey would soon become scarce.

She reached the best tree to gather moss and gathered enough that she wouldn't have to make the second trip when she cleaned out the elders den. Once back in camp, she arranged Flarestorm's nest before taking the rest of the fresh moss to the elders den where she spread it out after carrying off the dirty bedding to the dirtplace.

"Thank you, Moonpaw," Lilyspots meowed, her voice cracking. "Would you care to hear a story?"

Moonpaw shook her head. "I have to go hunting for you two and Flarestorm."

"Catch me a vole," Lizardstripe growled from where he was stretched out on the other side of the den.

Lilyspots snorted. "Catch whatever you can find."

Moonpaw nodded and ducked out of the den, heading back into the forest. Scenting the air, she could barely pick up any prey scents under the cool, crisp smell of the snow. Following a small scent carried on the wind, she headed in the direction of DarkClan territory, mouth watering as the scent of mouse got stronger.

Ears twitching, she stopped as she spotted the creature picking its way through the snow. It was thin, a poor catch at best, but it would feed one cat for the day. Carefully drawing herself forward, she leapt, killing it with a quick bite to the neck. Burying it in the snow, she followed another scent, squirrel, darting up a tree and managing to catch the rather plump squirrel before it could dart into a hole in the trunk. She spent more time trying to scent out prey, but couldn't find anything.

She padded back to camp and into the nursery.

"There you are, Moonpaw," Flarestorm eyed the two pieces of prey. "I'll take that mouse. The squirrel is fat enough to feed both the elders."

"But -"

"I've already eaten once today," Flarestorm meowed. "The mouse will be plenty."

The queen took the mouse and began to eat, leaving no room for argument. She was just walking out of the nursery with the squirrel when the sight of warriors rushing in through the thorn tunnel drew her attention. Berryheart, Grayears, Cricketsong, Rockpelt and Drizzlepelt were returning from their patrol, she supposed. But then her eyes landed on the limp red shape draped across Rockpelt's back.

"Rowanstripe!" Rockpelt yowled as he carefully lowered Firepaw to the ground.

The medicine cat slipped from the den and padded over to the cats. Duskpaw followed, herbs grasped in his jaws he walked over. The two medicine cats carefully sniffed Firepaw from nose to tail tip. There were large and deep scratches all across his body, a shallow wound to his throat, and a large slash going down his belly that was bleeding badly. Duskpaw looked up at his mentor, and Rowanstripe met his eyes, shaking his head.

"He's gone," Rowanstripe meowed.

Redpaw, who had come from the apprentices den, buried her nose into her brother's fur as Grayears laid down next to her son and pressed against him, not caring that blood was getting on her white fur. Sunfire, the Clan deputy, pushed his way through the crowd to lay with his mate and daughter. Moonpaw shuffled her paws and looked at Drizzlepelt. Her mentor returned her gaze, eyes grim.

"What happened?" Duststar asked as she padded over to Drizzlepelt.

"We found him in the woods," Drizzlepelt reported. "He was already badly injured and we could scent another cat, but not one of the Clans."

Duststar's eyes narrowed. "The rogue who killed Flightclaw," she murmured. "We will have to increase patrols again."

XxXxXxXxXx

In the next quarter moon that passed, Moonpaw could sense a definite shift in the way the Clan operated. The warriors and apprentices began reinforcing the dens and the tunnels, patching up any holes and making them stronger. Mentors had also begun to increase the battle training of all the apprentices. Redpaw hadn't spoken a word to anyone but her parents and mentor since Firepaw's death, but Grayears and Sunfire seemed to be recovering. Duskpaw had been taking the death of Firepaw hard, as Firepaw had been the first patient Duskpaw had seen in camp.

"Moonpaw!" Drizzlepelt snapped.

She shook her head and picked up her pace to catch up with the rest of the border patrol.

"Sorry," she mewed to her mentor.

He snorted. "If you can't pay attention on the border patrol make yourself useful by hunting."

Her ears flattened against her head but stayed with the patrol as they wrapped up the patrol of the LakeClan border. The trip back to camp was filled with Cricketsong and Grayears' chatter as discussed the warrior ceremony that would be occurring as soon as the group returned home. Badgerpaw, Brackenpaw and Redpaw would all be receiving their warrior names.

_I'm going to be the only apprentice in the apprentices den for four whole moons,_ Moonpaw thought, tail dragging through the dirt. In a way, the silence would be welcome, but she knew she'd start feeling lonely eventually.

"Let all cats old enough to catch their own prey gather beneath the TallBranch for a Clan meeting!" Duststar yowled as soon as the patrol walked through the tunnel. "Today, three apprentices will become warriors at last."

The cats below murmured excitedly, glancing toward the three neatly groomed apprentices that sat below the TallBranch.

"Cloverheart, Sunfire, Lightstep, are your apprentices ready to become warriors?" Duststar asked, glancing toward the three mentors.

"Badgerpaw is ready," Sunfire confirmed.

"Redpaw will be a great asset to her Clan," Cloverheart added.

"Brackenpaw was born ready," Lightstep purred.

Duststar leaped down from the TallBranch to stand before the three apprentices. "I, Duststar, leader of TreeClan, call upon my warrior ancestors to look down upon these apprentices. They have trained hard to understand the ways of your noble code, and I commend them to you as warriors in their turn. Brackenpaw, do you promise to uphold the warrior code and to protect and defend your Clan, even at the cost of your life?"

"I do," Brackenpaw meowed, staring at his leader.

"Then by the powers of StarClan, I give you your warrior name. Brackenpaw, from this moment you will be known as Brackenstorm. StarClan honors your bravery and wisdom, and we welcome you as a full warrior of TreeClan," Duststar announced, resting her chin on his head as he licked her shoulder. "Redpaw, do you promise to uphold the warrior code and to protect and defend your Clan, even at the cost of your life?"

"I do," she meowed firmly, eyes blazing.

"Then by the powers of StarClan, I give you your warrior name. Redpaw, from this moment you will be known as Redfire. StarClan honors your kindness and enthusiasm, and we welcome you as a full warrior of TreeClan."

Redfire licked Duststar's shoulder when the leader laid her chin atop her head, and her eyes had grown misty.

"Badgerpaw, do you promise to uphold the warrior code and to protect and defend your Clan, even at the cost of your life?" Duststar asked, eyes landing on the black and white apprentice.

"I do," he growled, claws digging into the ground.

"Then by the powers of StarClan, I give you your warrior name. Badgerpaw, from this moment you will be known as Badgerfrost. StarClan honors you determination and energy, and we welcome you as a full warrior of TreeClan."

"Badgerfrost! Redfire! Brackenstorm! Badgerfrost! Redfire! Brackenstorm!"

Moonpaw pushed her way through the crowd. "Congratulations, Brackenstorm!"

"Thanks," he purred. "You'll be a warrior, too, in a few moons."

Moonpaw flicked her tail. "Perhaps," she agreed. "The den sure will be lonely without you all."

"You won't be alone long," Redfire meowed. "Soon you'll have Smallkit, Reedkit, and Stormkit with you."

"And by the time you've been a warrior for a while, Raindancer's kits will have been born and made apprentices," Badgerfrost added as he padded over. "Maybe you'll mentor one of them?"

"Me a mentor?" Moonpaw repeated. "I don't know. I feel like I haven't learned much of anything."

"If you'd try harder you'd learn plenty," Drizzlepelt meowed. "Come on, Moonpaw. We're going hunting."

She sighed. "Yes, Drizzlepelt."

As she followed her mentor out through the tunnel once again, she glanced back at Redfire and could have sworn she could see the starry outline of Firepaw sitting next to her. But the tom wasn't looking at his sister; he was staring directly at Moonpaw. He appeared to be talking and she strained her ears to catch the words.

"_Snow will be stained red and the forest will burn..._"

Moonpaw's ears twitched. Snow will be stained red. Blood, maybe? And a fire would certainly burn the forest that TreeClan live in. A shiver went down her spine. Was Firepaw telling her that the Clan was facing the danger of a fire?

_**A/N: Thanks to Silverstone of ThunderClan for adding this story to his/her favorites! **_

_**Is TreeClan facing the dangers of a fire? The snow has been stained red with the blood from Firepaw's death, but could that have been what he meant? StarClan's words are never clear but things sure would be easier if they were!**_

_**~Ashflight**_


End file.
